Dania's Chamber Makes Historical House Its Home

DANIA BEACH — Mayor C.K. McElyea likens the renovated Nyberg-Swanson Historical House to a museum showcasing a piece of the city's past.

He likes the two-story building so much that he once considered buying it with his own money and turning it into a first-class French gourmet restaurant. But that was before it became a city treasure.

The property, across from City Hall on West Dania Beach Boulevard, is now the official home of the Greater Dania Beach Chamber of Commerce.

The chamber moved to its new headquarters two weeks ago after occupying a cubicle near the atrium at City Hall for more than two years.

The long-awaited move was like a housewarming party, with city officials, local business owners and residents stopping by to eat and sip soda and mimosas, and taking a look at different offices and expensive antique furniture on display in the hallway.

The main celebration on May 25 included a concert featuring the Hallandale Beach Symphonic Pops Orchestra and food provided by local restaurants, such as Grampa's Bakery, Casa Bella, Jimmie's Chocolate and Jaxson's Ice Cream Parlor.

Among the antique pieces on display are lamps, chandeliers, a $1,200 Victorian love seat and a $650 mahogany French table. They all belong to the Antique Center Mall of Dania, said antique dealer Dick Lehman, a spokesman for Main Street, a city-sponsored program that helps revitalize downtown.

Main Street, which had its headquarters at City Hall, has office space in the historical house.

The Nyberg-Swansons, who are among the city's pioneers, donated the house to the city eight years ago in hopes of preserving the structure, which was built between 1904 and 1914.

In 1993, using grants and donations from the community, city officials moved the building from Stirling Road and Federal Highway to the northwest corner of Dania Beach Boulevard and Northwest First Avenue.

In June 1999, the U.S. Department of Interior added the building to the National Register of Historic Places.

As part of a program aimed at preserving the building, city officials recently spent about $60,000 fixing and painting its roof and sealing its windows to prevent them from deteriorating further, said Jason Nunemaker, assistant to the city manager.

Nunemaker said the city is applying for a $345,150 grant with the Florida Division of Historical Resources so officials can renovate the building's kitchen, bathroom, a rear porch and areas of the building's second floor.

For now, chamber and Main Street officials will use the second floor for board meetings.

After the improvements are completed, Nunemaker and Commissioner Bob Mikes said, the city might turn the second floor into an exhibit room to showcase art and anything that depicts Dania Beach's history.

"We're trying to build on its uniqueness," Mikes said.

Thomas Monnay can be reached at tmonnay@sun-sentinel.com or 954-385-7924.